Rent or Buy? (Charlotte: sales, real estate, 2010)

[kja25]

Anyone have any advice on this topic? I'm torn between either renting an apartment in the SouthEnd for $1,100/month or buying a house in a developing neighborhood of Charlotte.

[tismyself]

Depends on how secure you personally are - if you were laid off tomorrow, how long could you make the mortgage?

By the way, there are much better bangs for the buck than $1100/month in SouthEnd unless you just happen to love that neighborhood.

[cagman]

in this market, renting makes more sense to me. You don't want to find yourself ready to move in 2 years to a place you really like, but find that your house has lost money and now you're stuck in it. I'd only buy if I was 100% sure I was going to be set for 5-7 yrs min.

That old line about "renting is throwing money away" doesn't really apply to today's market, even in charlotte. For many people across the country, paying their mtg is throwing their money away. They are paying high mtgs and their homes are still losing $1,000/month. It's a different time in Re today. Many have never seen anything like this before. They only know RE in an appreciating market.

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by kja25

Anyone have any advice on this topic? I'm torn between either renting an apartment in the SouthEnd for $1,100/month or buying a house in a developing neighborhood of Charlotte.

Both renting and buying have some advantages. There are times when renting is better, but most times buying is the best way to spend your money. Continue renting if you think you will possibly need to leave Charlotte in the next 3 years. If you think this is "it" for you, get a short term lease and spend the next couple of months getting to know different areas of the city to decide where specifically you could see yourself living - but do buy. Interest rates continue to be very good - and likely will be for at least the rest of this year. In addition, this is more of a buyers market right now - you would have a better opportunity to find your best deals.

Basically, if your job situation is stable, if your credit is good, if you have a 3 to 6 month cushion of inccome in savings for emergencies and you plan to stay in Charlotte at least 3 years - BY ALL MEANS, BUY.

[tismyself]

Originally Posted by cagman

in this market, renting makes more sense to me. You don't want to find yourself ready to move in 2 years to a place you really like, but find that your house has lost money and now you're stuck in it. I'd only buy if I was 100% sure I was going to be set for 5-7 yrs min.

That old line about "renting is throwing money away" doesn't really apply to today's market, even in charlotte. For many people across the country, paying their mtg is throwing their money away. They are paying high mtgs and their homes are still losing $1,000/month. It's a different time in Re today. Many have never seen anything like this before. They only know RE in an appreciating market.

Well said.

[anifani821]

Originally Posted by lovesMountains

Both renting and buying have some advantages. There are times when renting is better, but most times buying is the best way to spend your money. Continue renting if you think you will possibly need to leave Charlotte in the next 3 years. If you think this is "it" for you, get a short term lease and spend the next couple of months getting to know different areas of the city to decide where specifically you could see yourself living - but do buy. Interest rates continue to be very good - and likely will be for at least the rest of this year. In addition, this is more of a buyers market right now - you would have a better opportunity to find your best deals.

Basically, if your job situation is stable, if your credit is good, if you have a 3 to 6 month cushion of inccome in savings for emergencies and you plan to stay in Charlotte at least 3 years - BY ALL MEANS, BUY.

Agree. If you can qualify for a loan, rent short term and decide where you want to buy . . . these interest rates are going to go up and most likely by the end of 2009 . . . we will be seeing rates near 8% sometime b/c 2010, in my opinion (hey - my crystal ball is as good as anyone else's, Hee Hee). So I would consider buying a house later this year or in 2009. Prices will have stabilized and I would buy b/f the rates went up.

So check out neighborhoods now . . . and don't tie yourself up for longer than a six month lease if you are in the position to buy.

[rmorton]

Originally Posted by tismyself

Well said.

Your statement is only half true. First of all to lose 1,000 a month on a home purchase for 3 years means that on a 100,000 home it will depreciate 36% IN THE NEXT 3 YEARS. That is not happening in Charlotte unless you buy a home in a neighborhood full of sub prime mortgage holders. Home prices appreciated in Charlotte the last year, even with all the foreclosures. It depends on what price point and what subdivision you purchase. There are subdivisions where the homes have increased in price ( and are still increasing), and some where the prices are declining. If you consider that on a 200,000 mtge@ 6% you pay out about 15,000/yr in payments. BUT if you are in the 28% tax bracket (which is where you should be with a 200,000 mtg) you save 4000 in fed income tax. So if you house lost 1% =2,000 but you saved 4,000 you are 2,000 ahead. You have to consider all the facts. There are only a few times when it is better to rent, but now is not one of them, especially in Charlotte. When the houses start to rise any presumed savings will be rapidly lost because rising home prices fuel rising interest rates and higher home prices.

[Kari Strong]

I think you all have been very helpful. Yes, if you are stable and know you are going to be around for a few years, have a good job, and good credit, buying is a great idea. You do have to weigh the tax benefits against any possible short-term losses you see. If you have a good real estate agent, that is looking out for your best interest, they will do there duty to not put you in an area that they know may very well depreciate, just so they can make a quick buck.
Real Estate is a long term investment with short term benefits.

[amploud]

Originally Posted by rmorton

You have to consider all the facts.

I agree. You should include inflation in your analysis to be more accurate.

Also, I agree that renting is the way to go if you are not sure you will be in the home for at least 5 years.

[groove1]

Renting is very advantageous to some people. If you cannot afford maintenance on a home or very expensive unexpected repiar, don't buy a house. Renting has advantages in that most of the time these expenses are covered by the landlord or mgmt company. Renting will always be better for some people, regardless. If people were not pushed into buying homes because of sales agents telling them that buying a home is a better option, the floreclosure mess would not be as bad as it currently is.